Friday, June 29, 2012

How To Write Romance

Every writer has tips that help them write, rules they follow, and methods they use. Below are ten tips that I find helpful when I am writing romance.

1.Build suspense and intensity. Nothing draws a reader in and keeps them captivated than romance that slowly heats up like a teapot on a stove. First, it sizzles, boils, and then it erupts. Start things out slow between your characters with contact that is just a brush of the lips and a touch of the hands then builds to breath-stealing kisses and full-bodied caresses.

2.Describe, describe, describe. Oh yes, romance is just as thrilling as action and excellent prose can make all the difference when writing a romantic scene. Cover all the bases of the five senses: sight, taste, smell, touch, and sound. Get creative!

3.Use similes! Similes are a tiny piece of art in your writing. You don’t want to overpower the scene with similes, but creating a few of them can make all the difference to your details.

Examples:

* He kissed her as if he were drinking her lips.

* They made love like two warriors battling over the same goal.

4.Know your characters, plot, and genre. Don’t change your characters attitude just because they are being intimate. If the woman is shy, keep her shy during the whole love-making process. Also, keep your genre in mind. There are certain genres that require more steamy romance scenes, and then there are others where it isn’t necessary to go that far into detail. However, plot is the biggest factor. In my first book, I didn’t go too far into the details of my characters’ intimacy, but as the series went on that changed –especially in the third book because the plot (which consisted of war and death) required that I go further in the love scenes than I ever had before.

5.Use setting to your advantage. Seasons can make romance more sensual. If it is the peak of summer and the temperature is blazing hot, compare the heat outside to the heat your characters are feeling on the inside. Describe their surroundings too, and give attention to the bed (or whatever piece of furniture they happen to do the deed on).

Photo by Chrys Fey

6.Don’t ignore dialogue. Dialogue is just as important in romantic scenes as it is everywhere else. Have your characters voice how much they want each other and what they are feeling. Use cheesy comments even if a person in real-life wouldn’t ever say those things in the throes of intimacy. This isn’t real-life, this is a book, and let’s face it, we like some cheesy dialogue.

7.Get into the characters thoughts and emotions to make it more romantic. What are they thinking? Tell us! Are they nervous, scared, or anxious? Reveal it! After all, romance is very revealing. It is not all about the physical but the emotional as well.

8.Listen to the great love songs that make your heart go pitter-patter and arouse your deeper desires.

Songs that help me write romance:

* We’re In Heaven by DJ Sammy

* Take My Breath Away by Berlin

* In The Arms Of An Angel by Sarah McLachlan

* Changes by Deftones

* My Love by Sia

9.Pretend you’re the one being romanced. How would you want to be treated? What would you want to happen? What are your desires? In real life, your fantasy may not come true but it can in your book!

10. Lastly, there are two ways to go about writing a romantic scene. The first route is soft and sweet. The second is hot and steamy. If you’re writing a sweet encounter, the kisses will be long, their hands will be caressing each other tenderly, and the love-making will be slow and gentle. On the other hand, if you’re writing a steamy encounter, the kisses will be bruising and breathless, their hands will be eager, and the love-making will be fast and furious.

3 comments:

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Thank you for the tip, but I use "vanilla" titles because they tell exactly what the post is about, which makes it easier for an aspiring writer to find it on Google if in fact what they want to know about is "how to write romance", etc.

I do not use videos or pictures because pictures and videos are copyright protected, I do not own them. But in my opinion, a blog about writing should have writing. Not pictures and videos.